Let's go swimming together in all sorts of places. We'll also look at swimming in history, art, literature, film, TV in fact any way swimming can be painted, photographed, filmed, written or mused about.

Wednesday, 21 February 2007

Such a shame: this sun-bathing area used to be filled with colourful mosaic-covered fountains that the kids could run around between for some water play.I suppose adult melanoma production takes precedence...

Not very good pics because I was outside. This pool is right in the centre of Sydney, opposite Hyde Park, underground outside St Mary's Cathedral. It's a fantastic facility to have in the centre of the city. There's a sports hall which is used by office workers during the day, as the main pool is used for lapping. The pool is under here.

Visited here on Sunday 18 Feb 2007. Didn't have a swim though. I don't think the pool had been flushed by a decent tide for a while. This siteprovides the following information:

"Around Wollongong community groups built pools. Coal miners in the Illawarra region were chronically underemployed as the mine owners regulated the output of the mines to control the market. Coledale pool was built by voluntary labour around 1915 including coalminers who used their knowledge of blasting to good effect. At this time locals were also building Schools of Arts, forming sports and literary societies and workers clubs. This was a time of great hope and energy as Australians began to take pride in their lifestyle."